Governor De Santis Announces An End to Common Core

February 4, 2019

The big news last week was the Executive Order that Governor DeSantis issued to eliminate Common Core. Common Core was a nationwide plan that was adopted in Florida in 2014 and renamed Florida Standards.

The Florida Standards was the impetus for the testing madness that has extinguished the joy of learning. Students are viewed as test scores for data purposes, school grades, and teacher merit pay. In this push to ensure students meet standards, teachers are expected to teach to the test and put up with the intrusive and unnecessary micromanagement and constant observation. Whatever this new system may be, let’s hope it is one in which students are excited to go to school every day because learning is fun and purposeful.

In the current system, too many teachers are instructed to address the same standards, on the same day, in the same way. They are directed to teach automated lessons using CRMs, to use common assessments and to spend hours comparing student data. This rigid system is a major factor in loss of teacher autonomy. It also has contributed to the exodus of teachers from OCPS and the profession. Whatever this new system will be, may it be one where teachers are again respected as professional experts and are given the autonomy to teach.

With this big news comes big questions. What system will replace this rigid system? Where will the money to produce all new curriculum, professional development training, and assessments  come from? How will the change impact students and educators? Will educators and parents have a seat at the table in drafting a new system? Is there a corporation waiting in the shadows to profit off of this new system?

OCCTA has always stated that the standards should be seen as goals and guidelines rather than restrictive mandates. Hands on lessons, interactive creative lessons and lessons that can be connected to future jobs or the real world make learning exciting, understandable and fun. In the pursuit to teach the standards for the sole purpose of raising test scores some best practices have been left in the dust.